M.C. 200 "Saetta"

The Macchi C.200 "Saetta," was an all metal, air-cooled radial engined, stressed skin fighter designed by Macchi Aeronautica and flown by the Regia Aeronautica in many forms from 1940 to 1943, and flew more sorties than any other Italian aircraft. Well liked, it was maneuverable, with high stability, especially in a dive. Though it was considered underarmed and underpowered for a modern fighter, the resilience of both the airframe and air cooled engine lead to the C.200's extensive use as a fighter bomber.

The C.200 served in Yugoslavia, North Africa, and the Eastern Front. In Yugoslavia, the C.200 was credited with over 20 kills, and at least 10 damaged, as well as destroying nearly a dozen land targets. In North Africa, while aircraft such as the Hurricane were generally faster, the C.200's increased agility allowed it to dogfight on par with the more powerful, faster aircraft. On the Eastern Front, the C.200 excelled, with an 88 to 15 Kill/Loss ratio. Early on, the C.200 was very effective against aircraft like the I-16. However, losses on the eastern front began to rise as the Soviets began to produce more advanced fighters. A total of 66 aircraft were left behind in Russia once the Regia Aeronautica withdrew its forces.

Base variant. The first 240 produced were built with an enclosed cockpit, but all subsequent variants were built with open cockpits at the request of Italian pilots. Some late manufactured C.200's were built with M.C.202 serie 7 wings, adding two 7.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns to its armament.

Armament: x2 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns (370 rpg). Some were field modified to carry eight 15kg bombs, or two 50kg, 100kg, or 150kg bombs under the wings. (Later production aircraft also included x2 7.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns, with 500 rpg.)